01/16/2024

How to Lead Across Generations

One nonprofit struggled to get older and younger leaders to meet eye to eye

Association leaders who are mindful of diversity on their staff and boards are obligated to think about age and experience as much as any other factor. Different generations have different perspectives, insights, and priorities that are meaningful to an organization’s success. 

But building consensus across generations can be tricky.

Case in point: Earlier this month, the two founders of a nonprofit dedicated to seating gen Zers on boards in Maine published a report on how their effort imploded in spectacular fashion. In Learning From an Intergenerational Blowup Over Social Justice, published earlier this month by Stanford Social Innovation Review, Steve Kaagan and John Hagan explain how miscommunication and differing perspectives undermined their good-faith effort.

Please select this link to read the complete article from Associations Now.